Yehuda

Many have the practice to recite, in the prayer following Shemoneh Esrei, a verse that starts and ends with the same letter as their name, or that contains their name, or both. This is considered a source of merit. In this series, we will briefly analyze these verses.

ה' הַצִּילָה נַפְשִׁי מִשְּׂפַת שֶׁקֶר מִלָּשׁוֹן רְמִיָּה

Hashem, deliver my soul from lying lips, from a deceitful tongue. - Psalms 120:2

The Malbim clarifies the difference between lying lips and a deceitful tongue. A person who has lying lips will slander you behind your back. One who has a deceitful tongue is even worse; such a person actually hates you but feigns friendship to your face. In this verse – the verse for the name Yehuda and all other names that start with Yud and end with Hei – David asks G-d for salvation from both kinds of enemies, the overt and the surreptitious.